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 Web Lecture 3.3
Shifts in Meaning

3.3.1. Processes of Semantic Change

3.3.2. The Results of Semantic Change

Up to this point, we have spent a lot of time studying changes in the forms of morphemes. Now it's time to take a look at semantic change, or shifts in meaning. Like the form component of a morpheme, meanings are in a constant process of change. Over time, all the small changes add up to make rather significant shifts in the meaning of the morpheme or the words which use it. We've already seen that the literal meanings of words which were borrowed into English from Latin or Greek can differ quite a bit from their modern meaning. Like changes in form, these seemingly random semantic changes fall into regular patterns.

In this section of the study unit, we will consider the processes leading to meaning shifts, and the results of these changes.

3.3.1. Processes of Semantic Change

Semantic change is possible because human beings have the cognitive capability to form associations between different concepts. There are two principle types of associations: metaphor and metonymy.

Metaphor always involves an association between two things that is based on resemblance.

For example, the morpheme galac means 'milk'. It appears in several scientific terms such as galactose which is analyzed as:

galac /

(t) /

-ose

'milk'

 

'sugar'

'milk sugar'

Centuries ago, someone thought that a certain group of stars, gas, and dust looked like milk spilled across the sky and created the word galaxy to refer to these stars. Of course, English speakers used the same metaphor when they named that group of stars "the Milky Way." Nowadays, words like galaxy and galactic are used to refer to any large group of stars with a particular structure.

Metaphors can be systemic within a language.  That is, one basic idea can influence how we talk and think about a variety of concepts.  For example, there is an extended metaphor in English in which value is equated with smell.  Specifically, things that are good “smell good”, while bad things “smell bad”.  Examples of this metaphor include:

·        That idea stinks!

·        He came out of it smelling like a rose.

·        I smell a rat.

·        That smells fishy to me.

·        That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

·        The sweet smell of success.

Metonymy always involves an association between two things that is based on something other than resemblance. Usually, the meaning changes from one object to another that is close to it in space or time.

For example, people often say things like, "He drank the whole bottle." Of course, they really mean that he drank the contents of the bottle, not the bottle itself. But the bottle and the contents occur close together in space and time. This close association leads to a natural metonymic shift -- the form that was associated with the bottle comes to be linked with the contents, i.e. it shifts its meaning. Notice that there is no implication that the bottle and the contents resemble each other.

There are several different kinds of metonymy in English. 

·        A Part stands for the Whole (also sometimes called “synecdoche”):

  There are a lot of new faces on campus these days.

                          His parents gave him a set of wheels for his sixteenth birthday.

·        The Producer stands for the Product:

    He bought a Mercedes-Benz.

    She likes to read Stephen King.

·        The Object stands for the User:

  The flute had trouble reading the music.

  The helicopter decided to land on the lawn instead of the roof.

·        The Controller stands for the Controlled:

  George Washington defeated the British at Yorktown.

  The famous trainer Bob Baffert has won the Kentucky Derby three times.

·        The Institution stands for the People Responsible:

  The Linguistics Department has added several new classes.

  NASA is planning a shuttle launch for next week.

·        The Place stands for the Institution:

  Oregon Hall made a mistake in my bill this month.

  Hollywood is producing a lot of mediocre action movies these days.

·        The Place (or Date) stands for the Event:

  Has September 11 changed the way Americans view the world?

  Showing a film at Cannes is an important step in a filmmaker’s career.

 

3.3.2. The Results of Semantic Change

When semantic shifts occur, there can be several consequences of the changes. We'll take a look at the major types of consequences.

A word that once had a rather broad meaning can become restricted in the scope of things that it can refer to. You could say that a general meaning becomes specialized.

For example, the morpheme bibl originally meant 'book.' It still carries that general meaning in some words, such as bibliography. In many cases, however, it now refers to one specific book -- the Christian Bible. We see this specific meaning in words like biblical and biblomancy.

A word that once had a rather narrow meaning can come to refer to a broader scope of things over time. You could say that a specialized meaning becomes more general.

For example, the word toxin was borrowed from the Latin word toxicum 'poison by arrows.' In present day English, the meaning of this word has widened to include any kind of poison.

A word with an unpleasant meaning can come to have a neutral or even positive meaning. Also a neutral word can become very positive over time.

For example, the word dexter literally means 'on the right,' a simple fact that is neither positive nor negative. But since the majority of the people can do things better with the right hand, the morpheme has come in mean 'skill' or 'cleverness' in words like dexterity and dexterous. These new meanings have definite positive connations.

A word with a positive or neutral meaning can take on a negative meaning. In fact, meanings are much more likely to change for the worse than to improve!

For example, the word sinister is borrowed from Latin, where it meant 'on the left,' again a simple fact that is neither positive nor negative in and of itself. But Roman soothsayers considered the left side to be unlucky, and over time, sinister came to mean 'evil' or 'ominous,' a very negative meaning indeed!

 

As you read Chapter 7, watch for other examples of these two processes of semantic change and four results of semantic change.

Continue with the Unit 3 Reading Assignment 2.

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Copyright 1998 by the Department of Linguistics, University of Oregon.